Frequently Asked Questions

How do I install this bad boy?

Check out our handy YouTube video here:

What’s the battery life?

In low power mode you can expect approximately 50+ hours of runtime. With Low Power Mode turned off you can expect about 30+ hours of life. The life of the system varies based on the number of shifts that you do during a ride.

What is Low Power Mode?

With Low Power Mode you get all of the same awesome shifting performance but half the power consumption. The drawback is that Auto-shutdown and Get Me Home Gear are disabled. Also, the green flashing LED on the shifter is turned off to… save power.

Get Me Home Gear?

When the system senses that your shifter battery is critically low it will move into the gear you select in the app as your GMHG and leave you there while it powers down. This is meant to be a mid-cassette gear that you can use to safely pedal home.

What do the LEDs mean?

Red flashing LED means the shifter is looking for a connection – either the phone or remote can connect and control the shifter.

Green flashing LED means the shifter is connected and functioning properly.

Orange flashing LED means you’re either in micro-adjust mode or you’re trying to pair with a remote.

The power button on my shifter doesn’t click anymore. What up with that?

Sometimes a bit of grit and dirt gets stuck around the silicone button cover and causes the tactile switch to get stuck in. Give the cover a little tug, clean out any gunk in there, and you can even dab a little lube around the neck of the opening to make sure the cover is not sticky.

How do I turn the remote off?

The remote turns off automatically when it senses that the connection with the shifter is broken. You can turn your remote off by turning off the shifter and waiting a few seconds. The LED on the remote will flash green for 15 seconds and then red twice to indicate powerdown. You can also just take out the battery from the remote, that’ll kill the power quickly.

The motor sounds like it’s spazzing out.

The motor of the D1x is tuned to operate under tension. So if you fire up the shifter without having a cable connected to a derailleur the motor can oscillate (that’s the technical term for spazzing out) a bit. Give the shifter cable a little tug and it should settle back down.

Will this work on my … drivetrain?

Yes

Can I install this on a ….. bike?

The most important consideration when installing the D1x is space on the chainstay for the shifter. You should check that you have adequate linear space along the stay that is clear of any cable bosses or curves. You’ll want approximately 6 inches of space to get good placement.

Can you hack my shifter?

Is it waterproof?

The D1x is resistant against mud, water, and dust however it’s not 100% waterproof. Don’t submerge your shifter for anything longer than a brief bomb through a stream or you’ll risk having a bad day.

What is the operating and storage temperature of the unit?

Battery charging: 0°C to 45°C
Operation: -10°C to 50°C
Storage: -20°C to 40°C
Note: Do not store the lithium ion batteries at lower than -20°C for longer than 6 months.
Note: Discharging the lithium ion batteries at low temperatures will negatively impact battery life.

What kind of batteries do you use?

The D1x ships with 14500 and 10400 protected lithium-ion batteries. You can get replacements from the Archer store online. 14500 cells are AA size, 900mAh capacity, 50mm long and 14mm diameter. 10400 cells are AAA size, 600mAh capacity, 44mm long and 10mm diameter.

You can also get replacements from vendors elsewhere but be very careful to get the correct sized cells. Some vendors sell unprotected li-ion batteries that do not have overcharge and over-discharge protection circuits – this is dangerous. Seriously.

Further some other vendors sell 14500 and 10400 batteries that are slightly larger than the batteries that fit in the D1x. Using these larger batteries can break your shifter and ruin your day.

Last thing I’ll say here, some vendors sell batteries with crazy high capacity ratings that seem too good to be true. We’ve done tests on batteries from many vendors and have found that the high-capacity cells are often not as powerful as they say on the package. Stick with the D1x batteries that we sell and you can’t go wrong.